Sleeping well is essential for your health as it helps to restore the energies spent the day before.
However, new research by researchers at the University of Oxford revealed that this moment, sacred in the lives of many people, can be directly related to aging.
All of this happens because of a condition called oxidative stress , a common process in the body that accelerates aging and is also related to degenerative diseases.
Read more: Change habits and find out how to sleep well
Oxidative stress
Basically, it is when the cells in our body are stressed due to an overload of free radicals, which are molecules capable of damaging healthy cells in the body.
This type of stress is also linked to some bad habits in a person’s routine, for example, the consumption of alcoholic beverages, smoking , inadequate diet, tiring routine and lastly, lack of sleep .
So this is where the sleep and aging path intersect. Lack of sleep can result or accentuate oxidative stress, further impairing sleep, turning into a cyclical reaction.
This is because, through research, it was possible to see that the effects of excess free radicals also activate the neurons that control whether we go to sleep.
According to the researchers, this could be evidence that this type of stress can cause more problems to sleep, being responsible for aging and degenerative diseases.
The study results may also give rise to new treatments for disorders such as insomnia and reduce the use of ineffective sleep medications.
Read more: Natural sleep remedy: 6 home treatment options
Bedtime problems have become an epidemic and have affected people all over the world.
Therefore, discoveries about sleep and aging are important for health professionals and patients to be aware of these conditions.
